Monthly Archives: February 2014

你的员工幸福吗?

      节后跳槽一直是各行各业求职者心照不宣的事情,此时的猎头们也会比其他月份要忙得多。在中国生活工作了近十年的时间,我发现其实无论是企业还是个人,在这个人才流动高峰期招聘和求职都不易。二月初,中国LED行业的业内人士宣布了“高端人才用工荒”新闻,我确实有些惊讶。第一次听到“用工荒”这个名词,还是在2012年做第一期《罗迈国际中国人才流动调查报告》(TFS)的时候。通常北上广节后的“用工荒”体现在第三产业服务行业和传统制造业的流水线上,因此听到LED行业高端人才竟稀缺到用“荒”来形容,我认为惊讶之余,我们也要反思这其中的问题。

   我相信为了解决节后招聘难题,各大企业都会拿出最佳招聘方案。有些企业开出优厚物质待遇,购买补充商业保险,还有一些企业提供食宿补助,保证愉悦的工作环境,为员工购置娱乐设施。尽管企业使尽浑身解数,其中不乏引人注目的条件,但招聘情况仍不容乐观。此时如果HR们认为是求职者们的挑剔增加了招聘难度,那我要反过来质问你们,你们是否真的了解求职者的需求?你们考虑过员工工作时的幸福感吗?如果企业开出的优厚条件并非求职者们真正所需,那么再优厚的条件也不能让你的员工幸福地工作!就在几天前,我的朋友和我分享了一个术语Gross Personal Happiness (个人幸福指数)。第一次接触这个陌生而又新鲜的词汇,我感到个人幸福指数和员工有着必然的联系。根据《罗迈国际中国人才流动调查报告2013》(TFS2),薪资和升职对于35-40岁这个年龄段的求职者来说已经到达了顶峰(见图1),这就意味着金钱的对于他们的诱惑力在逐渐下降。因此对于中高端岗位的招聘,我认为重点一定要放在提升员工个人幸福指数上。

  提升员工幸福感可以从很多方面入手,主要是按照物质,精神,以及二者结合三种方式来分的。HR们如果很困惑到底什么可以提升员工的幸福感,不妨让我们先从物质方面入手吧!提到待遇,各位HR经理人都会想到什么呢?高薪,各种奖金,节日福利,年度体检,员工生日福利,员工周年纪念日,恐怕很多HR都会就此打住了。恰恰问题就出在大家对于物质待遇的理解,员工的就餐和娱乐休闲算不算物质待遇呢?在员工幸福感上,IT行业大亨华为是一个很好的范例。根据媒体估算,2011年华为员工平均年薪近28万元,不仅在中基层薪资上出手阔绰,在公司环境上也是毫不含糊,高端的餐吧咖啡吧,各种各样的娱乐设施,在这样高端的环境里工作,员工想不幸福也难呀!当然,不同风格和规模的企业也会有不同的设置。如果是中小型公司,不如好好改善一下公司的厨房或水台的物资供应,添购冰箱,微波炉,过滤器,开水壶,咖啡机,空气净化器等。让员工专心于工作,不抱怨公司的环境就是提升员工幸福感的第一步!

  其次,我想谈一谈企业,员工以及员工家属之间的三角关系。企业HR通常会围绕员工的方方面面考虑员工福利问题,大部分HR都是通过改善公司内部因素以提高员工的幸福指数。但员工在公司的幸福感不一定都与公司或者工作相关,员工家属作为一个外部因素也与员工幸福指数有着很大关联。在影响员工个人幸福感的因素中,员工家属虽然不是列在第一位,但是它的地位也是举足轻重的。罗迈国际医药行业顾问曹旭提到,现在很多药企为了鼓励员工努力工作,让员工深度融入公司文化中,将家庭计划也纳入了员工福利。一些企业的家庭计划是与旅游相关的,希望员工在繁忙工作的同时,也能在假期和自己的家人共享欢乐时光。还有不少外资药企从子女福利出发,提升员工幸福感。除了员工子女医药费报销外,还为员工提供哺乳期营养品。为子女提供儿童兴趣班,为那些忙于工作没有时间照料孩子的员工提供了便利。此外,从女性员工情感角度出发,子女福利更是绑定企业和员工的良好纽带。稳定员工与家属关系既能让员工体会到企业的亲情关怀,又能激发员工的积极性让企业得到更强的凝聚力。

  一提到培训员工,很多HR都会想到入职,晋升,出国等培训项目,但是把培训和员工个人幸福指数联系在一起,恐怕没有多少HR会往这方面想。但是很多行业和职能岗位都需要长久的培训计划。以我的公司为例,在过去几年中,想加入罗迈国际的求职者都会问我关于培训的问题。求职者不了解行业,希望通过公司提供的培训,尽快进入角色是可以理解的。这里我要强调一下能为员工带来幸福感的培训并不是入职培训,而是技能专业培训和实践。

  谈到培训我常常会想起十年前,那时我还在猎头生涯的开端,工作了五年我第一次得到了公司对于所有猎头的一次正规培训。那次培训对我来说意义非凡,很多工作中不明朗的问题,都变得非常清晰,之后我的成单率也开始飙升。现在想起来我很感谢当时公司的那次培训经历。因此,在我开创自己的事业时,我也将技能培训纳入了罗迈的培训体系,并为每一次培训录制了视频,为后期加入的新人的提供学习渠道。培训每周都会进行一到两次,每次都会有一个主题,形式为讲座研讨,员工问答互动,经验分享会,或视频教程观看与讨论。通过实时为员工解决工作中的问题,提高员工的基本技能,才是保证员工幸福感的基础。综合来看,技能和专业培训对于销售,营销,管理以及项目类的中高端人才都非常有帮助。改善了工作方法,工作质量直线上升,我找不到任何理由员工会不幸福。

  最后我想谈谈如何从心理层面提高员工幸福指数。员工的幸福感源于自己的努力能够得到公司以及管理层的认可。这些认可不一定都是物质上的奖励,精神鼓励也会给员工带来非常积极的心理暗示。诸如许多公司都有评月度最佳员工,季度最佳销售,年度优秀员工等奖项,为何不在物质奖励之外,在公司的里附上一个光荣榜,将月度季度年度优秀员工的照片贴在光荣榜上,或者管理层通过发邮件鼓励优秀员工的贡献,公示公司对于优秀员工的高度认可。同事和管理层对于员工工作的认可和宣扬是对员工最好的精神鼓励,心情好的员工幸福指数自然会随之上升。当然,我也读到过关于吐槽年终奖的趣闻,最不受欢迎的年终奖就是老板的表扬。其实莞尔一笑以后,也会细想其中的道理。努力工作一年,所有的员工都会在物质上有所有期待,年终口头表扬似乎显得确实不合时宜。但是,这并不意味着口头或者邮件表扬对于提高员工幸福感是没有任何意义的,从心理上鼓励员工并非小事。

  随着中国中国经济形势的不断缓和,相信马年的经济情况会延续2013年的上升趋势继续升温。高薪已经不能在影响员工幸福感因素中一手遮天了,物质条件越来越好,企业要想让员工真正的幸福,必须在抓住个人物质奖励的同时,了解员工的心理需求,从而给员工真正有价值的有帮助的鼓励!想要解决中高端人才“用工荒”的问题,不妨先从提升员工个人幸福指数开始。以往HR经理人们也会有很多想法,但是三思而不行是没有任何意义的。让员工体验幸福,开心工作是每一个招聘工作者的重要职责。

Read the original version at:http://www.ceconline.com/hr/ma/8800069684/e8e0c21101/

公司上市了,跟你有什么关系?

停摆了1年多后,A股IPO于2014年1月重启,这加速了各种公司上市的步伐。根据CVSource投中数据终端显示,2014年1月,共有55家中国企业在全球资本市场完成IPO,合计募集资金490亿元,其中有43家中国企业在A股完成上市。还有更多的企业已经备齐了材料在等待证监会的批文。

在这股热潮中,比起那些分析机构、投资人、股评家的分析,相信在企业上市这个问题上,“与我有什么关系”才是公司人更关心的。

在罗迈国际RMG Selection高级顾问李洛钒看来,对于以工资收入为主的中、基层员工来说,公司上市之后薪资福利待遇的提高是更直观的一种激励。去年上市的某房地产集团人力资源副总监程艳就表示,上市之后的1年内,她所在的公司进行了数次调薪,对大部分绩效表现良好的员工的工资进行了普涨,速度远远快于上市之前。另外,企业规模扩大之后晋升机会的增加也是员工更能感受得到的一种积极影响。

当然,企业上市之后随着收入一起增加的还有压力。“以往负责一到两个项目的团队现在都需要同时操作三到四个项目。”“一方面,是因为上市之后获得了更多的资源,另一方面上市之后对公司业绩表现也提出了更高的要求。”程艳告诉《第一财经周刊》。

客观来讲,虽然上市与否并不影响大多数人日常的业务操作,但由于上市公司需要符合监管部门制定的相应法律法规和规章制度,因此在企业的流程和一些工作规范上,原本不太合规的方面都要进行相应调整,严格执行监管部门的要求,这或许就会对诸如财务、公关等岗位提出挑战。

事实上,企业上市之后,所有的业务表现就不再仅仅对老板一人负责,而是需要顾及全体持股人的利益,以及接受监管部门的审查,一些新业务的拓展有可能受限制,利润也会受到影响。所以我们也能够看到像华为、博世这样的大型企业并不愿意上市。

企业上市之后究竟会给公司人带来哪些改变,本期《第一财经周刊》邀请了万宝盛华集团(中国)综合解决方案招聘流程外包资深金融顾问单进玮以及罗迈国际RMG Selection高级顾问李洛钒共同来为公司人答疑解惑。

A 切身利益的变化

公司的性质即将发生变化,公司人首要关心的都是自己的切身利益,比如薪酬福利。通常情况下,上市公司提供的薪酬福利待遇肯定会比非上市公司提供的薪酬福利待遇更加完善。罗迈国际RMG Selection高级顾问李洛钒表示,一方面,这是由于根据相关法律法规,上市公司各项薪资福利待遇都必须符合国家的制度规定,另一方面,公司在股市上募集到更多资金之后,管理层也会希望给员工更好的福利待遇,让员工感受到公司的前景良好。

对于中、基层员工来说,工资是他们收入结构的主体,所以最有吸引力的主要还是薪资待遇的调整。不少公司在上市之前会拿出一部分股权或是期权与员工分享。但是大部分员工的持股比例不是特别高,这部分收益不会取代工资而成为他们收入的主体来源。

中层员工由于处在职业上升期,更需要晋升机会,而在企业规模扩大之后,公司能提供更好的晋升通道和培训机会,这让中层员工的职业发展更具优势。

高层、董事会决策层可以说已经到了职业的黄金年龄,薪酬已经不是最有诱惑力的因素,所以这一人群会更看重上市之后公司提供的期权、股权方面的激励和管理权限的自由度提升。

判断公司走势的简单方法

看年报

最直接的方法就是查看公司去年的收益情况。包括赚了多少钱、与上一年相比的增减情况、资产配置、负债是良性还是恶性等等。

看股票

股票价格是市场口碑和股民信心的一个直接反映,它的涨跌情况也在一定程度上代表了公司的经营状况。

看业务

企业的管理方式相比以前是否更为规范,操作更高效;员工对工作的热情度、贡献率是不是比以前更高等等,这些也都能反映公司未来是否能够良性发展。

B  对工作的实际影响

个人更具职场竞争力

上市公司对员工的工作技能、业务规范有更高的要求,而经历了上市的过程,员工自身的能力以及经验也都会有所提升。

万宝盛华集团(中国)综合解决方案招聘流程外包资深金融顾问单进玮说,经历过股权变化的过程本身就会成为一个非常具有优势的附加值,在跳槽时会更具备竞争力,尤其是财务部门的员工,会更受那些准备上市的企业青睐。

另外,虽然上市之后晋升的途径不会有区别,但是之后企业规模肯定会有所扩大,这也势必会增加更多的职位,当然也包括管理岗位的空缺,增加了更多的晋升机会。

压力也会更大

虽然整体上来说,公司上市并不会对员工的日常工作流程造成特别大的影响,但企业上市确实会增加一定的业务压力。事实上,这可能从上市前就开始了。李洛钒曾服务于一家计划上市的企业,上市前,公司就提出了连续3年利润持续增长20%的要求,业绩考核也更为严格。

当然上市成功并不意味着就可以有所放松,单进玮介绍说,上市之后,企业的价值情况会更为直观,如果收益或声誉变差,股价就会即时发生波动。而这种波动可能会导致投资人对企业的信心产生动摇,随即陷入一个恶性循环。

工作流程更具规范性

企业上市之后,各个部门的组织架构都会更为完善,公司的管理会比以前更规范、更高效,当然相应的来说,制度也更为严谨。

例如,企业上市之后,就连最常见的因公出差报销流程都会变得更为严谨和繁琐。因为企业上市后,理论上不再仅对老板负责,而是对全体股东负责,并接受严格监督,所有账目都要明晰。上市公司财务报表如果作假,那么会有相应的法律惩罚措施。

国内和国外上市差别在哪儿?

客观来讲,企业在国内还是国外上市的影响更多体现在企业层面。国内上市流程复杂、法律限制高,国外上市基本采取备案式,流程制度化,公开透明,因此不少企业更青睐于在海外上市。

不过从另一方面来讲,在国外上市成功对公司整体的品牌知名度、业务实力也都起到了正面的助推作用。曾供职于海外上市企业也会成为员工一项有竞争度的工作经历。

我能拿到多少原始股?

根据李洛钒的介绍,员工整体持股比例一般都小于5%,部分企业会超过10%。但事实上,大部分企业仅中高层员工有资格认购原始股,有的公司主管级别也可认购,这是由公司的组织架构决定的。“原始股购买价格比较低,发行价往往高于当初买进价格,出售原始股时赚钱几率比较高,所以普通员工一般分不到。”单进玮说。普通员工一般有期权就已经是不错的了。

C 影响较大的一些岗位

财务

上市对财务人员的专业度和资格要求会更严格。非上市公司的财务部门也许只要按照公司规定做账即可,但上市公司在账目的清晰透明度上有严格的标准和要求,必须根据其所在市场,按照国内或国际会计准则执行。上市公司的账目一旦出现问题,不仅公司的声誉会受到影响,对相关责任人会有相应的法律惩处。

内部审计

这个对企业中各类业务和控制进行评估的岗位的重要性在上市之后会大大提升。单进玮介绍说,有些公司可能原本没有内审岗位或是由CEO兼任这一岗位,但是上市之后会专门增设人员全职负责内审工作。实际上不论是否是上市公司,一般企业规模越大,负责内部审核的人数和权限就会越多。

人力资源

这可能是受企业上市直接影响最多的一个岗位,人员招聘以及入职离职手续的工作量会大大增加。原因不难理解,公司变化之后岗位人员必然会出现大量的调动,例如上市之前,某些岗位需要有上市相关经验和技能的人来担任,而公司现有的人员经验不足,那就需要招聘。再融资之后公司规模扩大,对人员要求得改变以及相应的人员扩张又会相应地增加招聘、薪酬以及组织架构调整的工作。

公关(市场)

股价除了受公司运营状况的影响,还很容易受到声誉的影响。公司公关的工作直接影响着公司对外的美誉度,而这又会对股价产生直接的影响,所以企业公关工作的影响也会提升。另外,由于上市企业对于宣传有诸如缄默期等规定,也对公关部门的工作展开提出了要求。Google创始人拉里·佩奇和谢尔盖·布林在上市缄默期曾接受了《花花公子》的采访,就引起了轩然大波,尽管这个采访是数月前约好的,但它仍然影响了Google的声誉。

职工董事

公司上市之后,企业的普通员工也有一定的机会通过职工代表大会或工会选举,并且经过一系列法律程序认证之后成为职工董事,进入公司董事会。

职工董事代表出资人、企业和全体职工这三个方面的利益。尤其在维护职工合法权益方面,职工董事负有重大责任。职工董事在董事会中所占的比例没有明确的规定。单进玮也提到,在中国目前的环境下,职工董事在董事会中所占的比例偏低,可能无法起到应有的作用

Source: http://www.cbnweek.com/v/article?id=6618

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Major cities losing their allure for new graduates

Major cities losing their allure for new graduates

RMG China Talent Flow Survey 2013 (TFS2) appears in China Daily again! This is the second version of Chinese job market and talent flow market research since 2012! There are 13 classic questions and specific analysis based on region, gender, education background, industry, function, age etc. People who are interested in getting more info about job market in China should not miss TFS2!

After much consideration, Ying Hanlu decided against finding work in Beijing and Shanghai and instead returned home after graduating in the summer.

“My boyfriend and I were having a hard time with a long-distance relationship, so after he found a job in our hometown I followed,” she said.

Rising property prices and tightened restrictions on hukou – permanent residence permits – made life “too uncertain”, said the 27-year-old, who finished graduate school at Shanghai International Studies University. She plans to marry her boyfriend next year.

A study released last week by online recruitment company Zhaopin and Peking University’s Institute of Social Sciences found collegestudents are showing less interest in working in China’s mega-cities – Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou – after graduation.

Only 38.7 percent of the 10,800 students from 200 universities interviewed said they would choose to work in the three cities aftergraduating, a downward trend for three consecutive years, from 53.8 percent in 2011 and 42.1 percent in 2012.

Soaring property prices, air pollution and traffic congestion were major reasons, according to the report, Best Employer Award2013.

Similar findings can be seen in the RMG China Talents-Flow Survey 2013. Although 35 percent of the 4,000 employees polledchoose to stay in one of the major cities, 53 percent said they had considered relocating to second or third-tier cities, up 16 percentyear-on-year.

Some expressed a willingness to move further to even smaller cities.

“As the central government is tightening the household registration policies in major cities, I suppose the inflow of talents will beaffected in cities such as Beijing and Shanghai,” said Max Ma, chief operating officer of FESCO Adecco in Shanghai, a multinationalhuman resources company.

Zhu Hongyan at Zhaopin said her company’s data show in recent years small and medium-sized cities in central and western regionsof China have provided more job opportunities than eastern counterparts.

“The local economies in developed cities in East China are slowing down while the inland cities are quickly catching up and many big companies are expanding their business to second or third-tier cities, which have created more jobs for educated young people,” she said.

Mobility among different cities is helpful for China to realize a more balanced development among different regions, said Robert Parkinson, founder and managing director of the international recruitment group RMG Selection.

Contact the writers at [email protected] and [email protected]

(China Daily USA 01/27/2014 page5)

Copyright By chinadaily.com.cn. All rights reserved

Day breaks in china’s logistics industry

day breaks in china's logistics industry

MENTION logistics, and perhaps a busy port comes to mind. We may then recall how Rotter­dam was unarguably once the world’s busiest port, for 40 years. Yet, in just a few years this logistical crown was usurped by Singapore, among the most thriving of countries in Asia. How is the logistic industry going on in the Chinese market? Find out in Ruben’s latest article published on China Today “Day Breaks in China’s Logistics Industry”!

The term “logistics” was first coined in 1927 by U.S. scholar Ralph Borsodi. Yet logistics services actually originated in military usage, and logistics has since come to play a major role in today’s global supply chain. Among all types of logistic services, however, third-party logistics (TPL) first started in the 1980s in the United States. This business ex­panded by 20 percent each year over the following 20 years. And then TPL in the European countries swiftly came up from behind.

The world was, to a large extent, then soon surprised by the rapid develop­ment of the logistics industry in China. Though the industry was exposed to a negative economic environment from 2008 to 2009, during which the world suffered the financial crisis outbreak, it was somehow a wakeup call for inter­national logistic companies, to the fact that Asia, or more specifically China, is where the future of the industry lies.

What’s going on in the industry in Europe and the U.S.A., as compared to China’s current TPL development? There are apparently many differences.

Enormous Investment in an Emerging Industry

In terms of logistics infrastructure, since most business is done through ocean freight, differences may be il­lustrated by comparing the amount of investment in port infrastructure in China and Europe. After China officially became a WTO member in 2001, inter­national TPL rushed into the Chinese market. A huge investment in China’s TPL has since been evident. In the year 2002, there were only about 10,600 quay berths, yet by 2011-2012, they had almost tripled to 31,000 (2013-2017 Chi­na Port Logistic Industry Analysis and Prediction Report data). The amount of investment has continued to increase each year. For example, after gaining great rewards in 2011, the Logistics Management Department of Liaoning Province decided to invest RMB 20 bil­lion in port infrastructure in 2012.

Since Europe became involved in the logistics business earlier than Asian countries, as regards both infrastructure and operation of the logistics industry, European countries have achieved great­er maturity. Their investment should therefore not increase as rapidly as in China. However, through specific invest­ment in either channels or bridges to solve small problems, certain cities like Hamburg and Antwerp are still among their greatest ports in Europe. More­over, investment in further development never stops in Europe. Rotterdam, as the best port in Europe, absorbed €10 billion (about RMB 80 billion) in invest­ment from government and corporations from 2006 to 2013. And despite being the best in Europe, development of this port has never stopped.

Toward Lower GDP Costs

Observing the logistics costs in per­centage terms of GDP in China and in some developed countries, we see there is still much to improve in China’s logis­tic systems. Logistics costs refer to the costs of transporting and storing prod­ucts, as linked with charges for transpor­tation methods including train, truck, air and ocean transport. Other logistics costs include fuel, warehousing space, packaging, tariffs and duties.

In 2011-2012, logistics industry costs as percentage of GDP were: U.S.A. – 10.5 percent, UK – 10.6 percent, Neth­erlands – 11.3 percent, and Japan – 11.4 percent. In 2011-2012 in China, logistics industry costs as a percentage of GDP was about 18 percent – 8 percent higher than in developed countries (China Lo­gistics Club data). Further explanation is required here: lowering such costs as a percentage of GDP is more profitable for businesses. This is because logistics ser­vices do not add value to the process. To be specific, the faster and more efficient you are, the more money you make dur­ing the process. Unfortunately, an in­creasing number of logistics companies in China are still struggling for higher profits.

Yet, it is worth mentioning the case of Qingdao, a city doing so well in logis­tics that it sets a good example for other cities in China. In 2008, the cost of lo­gistics in Qingdao was only 9.8 percent of GDP, comparable to developed coun­tries. The city mainly developed its port, supplementing airfreight and rail trans­port. It has thus focused on its specialty – ocean freight. In this regard, reduction of logistics costs requires companies to specifically focus on an industry and of­fer proper logistics services at the same time.

Clear Norms and Standards Required

There is a famous saying among the Chinese, “Nothing is accomplished with­out norms and standards.” This works in the logistics industry, too. Logistics management standardization refers to national regulations and standards in the industry, the assortment of types and sizes of companies, the business process, and so forth. To manage an industry well, to a large extent, entails a well-established management system.

The United States was the first coun­try in the world to organize a national logistics management department – the National Council of Logistics Manage­ment (CLM). In the 1980s, rules and regulations (around 1,200 terms) were drafted for airways, waterways, railways and highways, which ensured the qual­ity of logistics services in the country. It is the same in Europe. DHL, Kuehne & Nagel, DSV, Panalpina, CEVA – all these companies are excellent performers in the market. The key reason is that peo­ple know what they are doing every day and why they do what they do. Everyone is clear about standards and norms.

As for Chinese logistics standards, of course companies must follow rules from the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Transport, and the General Administration of Customs. However, these are all very general rules. And al­though there are local logistics organiza­tions in China, for example, the China International Freight Forwarders Asso­ciation being one of the biggest, such or­ganizations have yet to devise specific rules. There are thus no detailed rules and regulations for Chinese logistics companies to follow.

In this regard, I have two sets of ad­vice for Chinese logistic organizations. Firstly, I would recommend that Chinese logistics organizations, especially local ones, cooperate with each other by hold­ing events and networking activities. In this way, logistics organizational net­works would expand effectively. Through merging local logistics organizations toward a larger scale, amalgamation could approach the level of international logistics organizations. Another point is to increase standards for companies wishing to join logistics organizations. Normally companies who are members of the organization are given logistics certificates. I think if China divides the certification system into the three levels of basic, good and excellent, some truly fine logistic companies would be more willing to join such organizations.

Market Segmentation

As client needs may vary quite signifi­cantly, logistics services could be divided into many types: by industry, geographic region, product, clientele, time duration, service, and interest return. In freight forwarding, for example, the basic ser­vice is transport from port to port. Other companies offer added-value services – transport from door to door. The market is thus based on service type. Market segmentation among big international companies in Europe is fully developed. They offer services for ocean imports and exports, containers, contract logis­tics, and so forth. Customized services have become one of the core ideas for running businesses in today’s world. Moreover, there are logistics companies offering services to only one or a few select industries, such as in automotive and consumer products, or chemicals.

Development in China’s logistics mar­ket segmentation is still at entry level. At the beginning, a lot of logistic companies provide the same services. Problems ap­pear at a later stage when profits begin decreasing at a rapid rate. Companies, therefore, have to think about how to make the pie bigger before getting their slice. A few of the better logistic com­panies, such as COSCO Logistics and CNPL, are performing well through the market segmentation process, based on geographic region, industry type, as well as the size of client companies.

The point of comparing the industry in China to that in Western countries is not to let everyone down. Though there are disadvantages for China right now, with the above improvements, business will get better sooner or later. There is no doubt that, during the past decade, the development of the logistics industry has been amazing.

When the Netherlands was still king of the logistics industry, Asian ports and logistics companies were left far behind. China took but a few years to catch up, and then take the lead. With the coun­try’s rapid economic growth, I am con­fident that China will unleash a logistics industry gold-rush in the near future. RUBEN VAN DEN BOER is RMG Selection consultant.

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